Monarch Outlook

By Nicholas Orozco, Sports Editor

As fall sports wrapped up their season’s this past week, Valley College’s teams finished with a mixed bag of results. Football, women’s soccer, mens’ and women's water polo all played their last games. Football concluded their season with the overall record of 3-7. Two of those wins came from conference. They ended their season on a high note with a two game win streak against Santa Monica and long time rival Pierce. The Monarchs looked completely different on Saturday when they played longtime rivals Pierce College in the battle for the bell. Valley displayed a new energy that persisted throughout the entire night, almost shutting the Brahmas out entirely. This could have been due to the fact that these two schools have had a rivalry dating back over fifty years. The rivalry clearly fueled the intensity of the game — with both teams wanting to ring the bell. Following the win, families of the players filled the field to commemorate the sophomores’ final game and the end of the season.

Women’s soccer finished their season with a record of 8-12-2, hamstrung throughout the season by a lack of offense. The Monarchs scored a total 46 goals while allowing 53 this season. Although their net scoring was negative, the ladies always came to each game with a positive attitude. Every opponent was a tough adversary as associate head coach Greg Venger said, “it’s a tough conference.” Finishing the season with a three-game winning streak was a way to send the sophomores off in a positive way and also served as a testament to the character of the Monarchs.

The men’s water polo team returned to the playoffs once again. Undefeated at their home pool (6-0), the team boasted an overall record of 19-9. The Monarchs participated in multiple tournaments: Golden West, Cuesta, Saddleback and won the Riverside Tournament with a 3-0 record. The Monarchs’ triumphant reign drowned when they fell to Cuesta College for the conference title. Saddleback ultimately sank them in the Southern State Regionals. In the end, water polo continued its trend of successful playoff runs before falling short of winning a title or state championship. Four players from the squad were selected to the All-Western State Conference first team. Sophomores Hakop Ansuryan, Sako Kaputikyan and freshmen Johnny Agazaryan and Vindislov Danilov. Sophomores Max Ayrapetyan and Edward Shanakian were named to the conference’s second team. Freshman George Saroyan earned honorable mention.

With spring dawning ever closer, Monarch fans will soon be able to enjoy men’s and women’s basketball, softball and baseball. The Lady Monarchs will host their first home game on Saturday at 3 p.m.